Nothing Like a Mothers Love
Travel is a common theme in my life -- probably started with the family vacation we took every year when I was young. But in all my travels, I have seen another universal theme, a common symbol of unity, love and Peace. Mom. She's got the big love. From Ethiopia to Seattle, mothers protect us - the offspring. When we grow up, we may leave her house to build our own, and her cooking to add more flavors to our palates, but she's still the woman that held us to her breast, nurturing and cooing to us, her most-loved child. She would do anything to protect her child. Koko is not a mother. I'm fascinated by her. She's a 33-year old lowland gorilla who, since infancy, has been working with Dr. Francine "Penny" Patterson. With her ability to "talk" to Penny using sign language and a vocabulary of more than 900 words, she speaks of having a baby. Often. Achingly. Her motherly gentleness and protective instincts were displayed when she got a kitten as a companion. This 280 pound ape cradles the kitten, stroking it and purring to it while signing "baby, baby" over and over. Even Koko, childless, mourns the lost opportunity. But she also doesn't have the heartache of lost children due to the nonsense that goes on in the world today -- drugs, murder, mental torment and wars. If mothers ruled the world, would there ever be another war? Not if my mom ruled? And probably not yours? Disputes would be settled over a cup of tea, and everyone would end up laughing. On The Cat's Cradle (a favorite blog,) I read this story about Julia Ward Howe's first Mother's Day in 1870 called Mother's Peace Day. Julia, author of The Battle Hymn of the Republic, wrote a proclamation which begins with: Arise then...women of this day! Arise, all women who have hearts! Whether your baptism be of water or of tears! Say firmly: "We will not have questions answered by irrelevant agencies, Our husbands will not come to us, reeking with carnage, For caresses and applause. Our sons shall not be taken from us to unlearn All that we have been able to teach them of charity, mercy and patience. We, the women of one country, Will be too tender of those of another country To allow our sons to be trained to injure theirs." Julia Ward Howe, Mother's Day Proclamation, 1870 Imagine all the mothers of the world stopping their sons, husbands, and fathers. All the mothers of the Israelis, the Palestinians, the Koreans, the Japanese; all the mothers of the the blacks, the whites, the straights, the gays; all the mothers of the Republicans and the Democrats . . . All the mothers saying: Enough. Enough! Wouldn't you like some tea. David Perdew
Writer / Photographer / Consultant
http://www.WorldWantingPeace.com
http://www.typepad.com/t/trackback/1883095
http://www.60DaysTo100K.comhttp://catcradle.typepad.com/the_cats_cradle/
MORE RESOURCES:
Higher education, with yogaGlobe and Mail, Canada - 16 hours ago... a gymnasium and a 1700-seat varsity centre that can host convocation ceremonies, as well as dozens of dance, fitness and yoga studios. ... |
The medicinal powers of yogaCBC.ca, Canada - Sep 5, 2008But medical research that's been accumulating over the past 10 to 15 years is showing that yoga can provide health benefits that many people may not realize ... |
Reaching out through yogaFort Wayne Journal Gazette, IN - 14 hours agoShe also hopes it can change the world, which is why the Indiana native founded the non-profit Yoga World Reach (www.yogaworldreach.org) in Vail, Colo., ... |
Yoga At Cranberry Lake PreserveWestchester.com, NY - 20 hours agoThen join certified Kripalu Yoga instructor Franklin Shire for an outdoor morning session, Saturday, September 13, 9:30 am at Cranberry Lake Preserve in ... |
Princess Offers In-Room Fitness, Yoga for KidsCruise Critic, NJ - Sep 5, 2008Princess Offers In-Room Fitness, Yoga for Kids Princess Cruises is expanding its onboard spa and fitness offerings. Among them: In an industry first-ever, ... |
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